1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates a packing method and a packing tool used in the packing method.
2) Description of the Related Art
Corrugated boxes are well known packing materials. However, although the corrugated boxes are suitable for packing relatively small articles they are not suitable for packing big articles. The image forming apparatuses such as the color printers, copiers are originally bulky; moreover, sometimes an additional paper feeder bank is provided with them for housing large amount of paper which makes them more bulky. Therefore, the corrugated boxes are not suitable for packing the image forming apparatuses.
Large articles are generally packed using pallets. A pallet includes, for example, a rectangular base and four posts at the four corners of the base and a ceiling plate. The article is placed on the base in the space guided by the posts and the ceiling plate. A related technology has been disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2002-179060 (Paragraph [0018] and FIG. 1).
Recycling of used objects has been desired, and the packing material is no exception. After the article is unpacked, the base and the posts of the pallet are disassembled and stored at one place so that they can be reused. The posts are bundled together so that they remain together and take lesser storage space. This enables better management and also prevents loss of the posts. A related technology has been disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2001-315777.
The article to be packed placed on the pallet and accommodated in a space between the pallet and the posts and possibly an upper lid. If the article is small and there is extra space, it is necessary to fill something around the article so that the article does not move. Foam is generally used for such purpose. Sometimes the article is tied with a band. However, either the foam or the band is required to firmly hold the article. Moreover, the articles are of varying sizes so that foams or band of varying proportions are required which leads to an increase in the cost. Moreover, a slope plate is required to unload the article that has been unpacked from the pallet.
The packed articles are stored in a warehouse before they are transported. In a warehouse, generally the packed particles are stacked above one another to use space effectively. However, image forming apparatuses can not be packed in this manner; because they may get damaged. Therefore, for stacking the image forming apparatuses, shelves having many tires are used.
Some of the image forming apparatuses have an automatic document feeder on the top side. There is a possibility that the automatic document feeder hit against the upper lid and get damaged. Therefore, the automatic document feeder is covered with a packing material from above when the image forming apparatus is packed. Sometimes a band is also wound around the sheet surface to fix the feeder in some cases.
The conventional packing methods require different packing material; moreover, an appropriate strength with which the band should be tied needs to be adjusted. If the band is tied weakly, the article may move and get damaged, if the band is tied tightly, the article may break.